Martin Ho: What to expect from Tottenham Women's new head coach

New York Times

2 days ago

After almost a month of searching for the right candidate, Tottenham Hotspur Women have appointed their new head coach.
The arrival of Martin Ho was officially announced on Friday. Arriving from Norwegian club Brann on a contract until 2028, the 35-year-old has the challenge of breathing new life into a side who have regressed significantly in the past 12 months. After coming sixth in the Women's Super League (WSL) and getting to the FA Cup final in the 2023-24 season, Spurs finished second-bottom in the campaign just ended.
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Born on Merseyside to a Chinese father and English mother, Ho began his coaching career locally at Everton, where he spent three years, first as an academy coach and then as an assistant first-team coach for the women's side from 2015 to 2018. He then crossed Stanley Park to take the role as the technical director and head coach of Liverpool Women's under-21s, before leaving for Manchester United in 2020 to work as an assistant head coach under first Casey Stoney and later Marc Skinner.
After three years at United, helping establish them into one of the strongest sides in the WSL following promotion from the Championship in 2019, Ho took charge at Brann in July 2023. Stepping up to a head-coach position for the first time, he brought one of Scandinavia's best and most notable clubs to a whole new level.
Brann were reigning champions of Norway's Toppserien but Ho inherited a side in relatively poor form. Before pausing their March-to-November season for the playing of the 2023 World Cup, Brann had lost five of their 16 matches, hurt by the departures of several key players, including Lisa Naalsund, who had left Brann to work with Ho at United in January of that year.
Ho flipped their fortunes almost immediately, winning seven out of his first eight league games and, in the September, sprinting through Champions League qualifying. Brann became the first Norwegian side to participate in the group stage of Europe's premier club competition since the phase was introduced in the 2021-22 season.
They then went one better, finishing second in their group to set up a quarter-final against Barcelona. Brann battled to a 5-2 aggregate defeat against the best team in the world in March last year, with Barca going on to beat serial champions Lyon 2-0 in the final. Under Ho, Brann became a team unafraid to play their game and compete against Europe's elite clubs.
'He has developed the expression of the team a lot,' says Lars Johan Myklebust, the sporting director for Brann's women's team. 'There's a very clear identity on how we are playing, and that has been him and the coaching staff. That's why he was hired, because of the way he sees the game, wants to play, and his ability to instil that in the team.
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'We have a very clear identity now, and we have an attacking football where we are dominating. That has been important, and he has developed the team in that way. He came over from Manchester United, so he had some standards that might not yet have been in place.'
Ho did not add to Brann's trophy cabinet during his two-year tenure (they finished second last season and are in that position again now after 14 of the 27 league games) but he made meaningful progress in developing players and establishing an attractive style of play. He typically lines up his sides in a 4-3-3 formation, giving his advanced central midfielders the licence to push forward and support attacks, almost acting as wide No 10s.
'A Martin Ho team immediately looks to regain possession and tries to be brave with the ball,' says Myklebust. 'They try to play. They take chances when they have the opportunity, but if you don't, have patience. But still, they are brave, so even if teams are pressing you, you have the confidence to play and get out of pressured situations.'
Under Ho, 20-year-old Signe Gaupset is emerging as one of the most exciting talents in Scandinavia and is representing Norway at this summer's European Championship. In 14 league appearances this term, she already has 10 goals and six assists playing as the right-sided central midfielder. Gaupset is the outstanding player in the team and may soon be playing for one of Europe's biggest clubs, having taken the most significant steps of her career yet under the Englishman.
The new Tottenham coach has a strong understanding of youth development, and at least two players at United credit him for their progression; one of whom called to congratulate him when news circulated of his new job in north London, according to sources who will remain anonymous to protect relationships. But for Ho, who counts Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola and basketball legends LeBron James and the late Kobe Bryant among his biggest inspirations, it's not just what happens on the grass that's important. He's equally concerned with developing players as humans.
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'Winning to me looks slightly different,' Ho told broadcaster DAZN before that Champions League meeting with Barcelona. 'I don't always look at the trophies you put in a cabinet and the trophies you lift at the end of a season. It's more, 'Is this team going to progress, get better, and become more sustainable? Do we enable these players to fulfil their own ambitions and dreams?'.'
Carrying those personal skills from Brann to Tottenham will be essential as the latter aim to erase the ghosts of their 2024-25 season. Under his Swedish predecessor Robert Vilahamn, who was dismissed in early June, Spurs went on a disastrous 10-game winless run from January and were only spared a relegation fight due to Crystal Palace's incompetence in gaining only 10 points from the 22 matches.
Re-invigorating a side with international experience and youth will be a priority assignment on Ho's list, as they aim to return closer to the Tottenham side that appeared to be closing the gap on the league's big five a couple of years ago. And according to his former boss, Ho can connect with players on a personal level and take them to new heights on the pitch.
'He lives for football,' says Myklebust. 'He is intense in his work, and he's very hardworking. He's early in the office and goes home late, always focusing on the job. He's very dedicated and wants to improve the team.
'He has the potential to succeed. He has a very clear way of playing, and he is good on the pitch at conveying his ideas and helping the players with his suggestions. He sees the smaller details.
'I'm quite confident that he can put a clear way of playing into the Tottenham team.'